Schaft



Dec. 2, 1930.

H BURKAS 1,783,495

CIRCUIT BREAKER I-bR IGNITION INSTALLATIONS OF INTERNAL COMBUSTIONENGINES Filed March 9. 1927 Fig. 3

Fig. 4

Patented Dec. 2, 1930 Ems Bums, or runmemr, GERMANY, assrenoa T0 ROBERTZBO SCH AKTIENGESELL- SGHAFT, OF STUTTGART, GERMANY ENGINES CmbUITBREAKER FOR IGNITION INSTALLATIONS OF INTERNAL-COMBUSTION Applicationfiled March 9, 1927, Serial No. 174,080, and in Germany April 19, 1926.

This invention relates to an electrically operated circuit-breaker forthe ignition installation of internal combustion engines, thiscircuit-breakerbeing distinguished by the features of having only slightoscillating masses and of being electromagnetically controllable by aweak current.

In electroma-gnetically actuated circuitbreakers, as designed hitherto,the electromagnets have been caused to act upon an armature adapted toserve as a carrier for the movable contact of the circuit-breaker. Owingto the high'self-induction of the coil of the electromagnet, andespecially in consequence of the comparatively large mass of thearmature, together with that of the circuit-breaker contact, the numberof the interruptions of the known electromagnet Th circuit breakers isrestricted and often times not sufficient. Moreover the interruptions inkIlOWIl devices of this character may be inaccurately timed, by reasonof the fact that the interruptions commence with a high number ofinterruptions which are initially irregular as a result of variations inthe distance between the armature and the electromagnet; such variationsresulting rem undesired oscillations of the armature sufficient to bringit within the range of the attractive force of the electromagnet.

These drawbacks are done away with, according to the present invention,by a diminution of the oscillating masses of the circuit breaker,provided the latter be of that type in which the .contacts are moved bythe action of a magnet field upon the current-carrying conductor orconductors.

The invention is'illustrated diagrammatically and by way of example inthe accompanying drawing, in which Figs. 1, 2 and 3 show three differentembodiments of the circuit breaker, whereas I Figs. 4 and 5 show twomodifications solely of the current-carrying conductors which are closedloops inthese examples. Referring to Fig. 1 a denotes a. battery and b aprimary coil receiving current from said battery. The coil 6 is a partof a high-. Volta e ignition coil, and the current flowing through itpasses also over contacts a 0 secured to a conductor d and beinginsulated therefrom. This conductor has the form of an open loop and islocated in thefield of an electromagnet e. The conductor or loop d isconnected up at one end to the battery a over a protective resistance rand over a wire and itsother end can be connected up to a rotary switch9 driven positively by the internal combustion. engine.

If the circuit composed of the mass and the members afr-d and g isclosed by the switch 9, the magnet field e deflects one leg of the Ushaped and current-carrying conduct-or or open loop upwards and theother leg downwards because the controlling current passes into the twolegs of the open loop in opposite directions through the magnet field.

e two contacts 0 move, from each other in time with the revolutions ofthe engine shaft and interrupt the primary circuit, so that there isproduced in the secondary coil h in known manner a highvoltage currentthat passes over in the form of a spark at the sparking'plug 2". Whenthe controlling current has been interrupted by the switch 9 the magnetfield e no longer acts upon the conductor d, so that the contacts areagain moved against each other either by reason of the inherentelasticity of the conductors or by means of a separately provided spring(not shown in Fig. 1) whereby the primary circuit is again closed.

The circuit-breaker which consists of the contacts 0 and the conductor dneed move only small masses over short paths, and the controllingcurrent of the circuit-breaker can, therefore, be very small. Besides,the contacts can be moved very quickly, as the entire system has a veryslight inertia electrically (low self-induction), as well asmechanically, owing to the slight mass.v The fact that the contacts aremoved in opposite directions also makes for a high rate of separation.

in the modifications Figs. 2 and 3, in which therefore away the carrierof the magnet field has been omititively not only as regards opening,but also as regards closing the circuit. For this purpose thecontrolling cilire'nt can, as in Fig.

2, be sent by means of a rotary switch k through the contact carrier dalternately in opposite direction, so that the magnet field 5 actsalternately to open and close the contacts. The length of the periods ofthe open ing time and the closing time is determined by a suitableconstruction of the switch is. In Fig. 3the control current is sentalternately by means of the rotary switch. is through one and the otherof two different loops at d, the legs of which are connected with eachother by the contact holders; In this way the number. of theinterruptions is to be able to use the smallest possible control currentas the force for moving the contacts, a wire can be made to pass severaltimes through. the magnet fields, as shown in Fig. 4. The, contacts arethen fastened to a plu- 'rality of conductors through all of which thecurrent flows in the same direction. Furthermore, in order to render itpossible to subject the wire loops to a higlie'r load, two parallel setsof wires may be disposed in a magnet field, the current passing also inthis case through all wires of a set in the same direction, as isthecase in the furthermodifi cation shownin Fig. 5.

It is a matter of course that the control current loop can be designedand arranged in such a manner that its shape is not altered when thedevice is used but forms and re mains a rigid structure which isdeflected as a whole in the magnet field. ,The two longitudinal sides ofthe loop must then be subje'cted; of course,-to fields of oppositesense,

and only one movable contact should be fastened to the loop. Also inthis constructional form the control currents can be sent through theloop. alternately in opposite directions, so that the contact is movedin both directions by a controlled electrical force. With loopsoperating-with change of their I form the magnet field can be producedby that current which flows through the circuit breaker loop. Thecurrent-carrying conductors are then' deflected by their mutualattraction and repulsion. a

I claim :5 I "1. An electrically operated circuit-breaker for ignitioninstallations of internal combustion engines, comprising, incombination, a current-carrying conductor, two contacts attachedthereto, and a magnet-field, the

arrangement of said magnet-field and said contacts relative to eachother being such that the different contacts can be deflected by the k5said magnet-field in opposite, directions relrendered more independentof the number of ative thereto, substantially as set forth whereby therate of relative movement between the contacts is enhanced.

2. An electrically operated circult-breaker 4 for ignition installationsof internal combustion engines, comprising in combination, acurrent-carrying conductor consisting of a wire forming a plurality ofloops, two contacts attached mechanicall to the two sldesv of saidloops, and ma et elds, the arrangement of said magnet elds andthe saidloo s relative to each other being such that t e loops can be moved bythe said fields, substantially as set forth.

3. An electrically operated clrcult-breaker so for ignitioninstallations of internal combustion engines, comprising, incomblnation, a current-carrying conductor consistm of a plurality ofwires formin a plura ty of v loops, two contacts attache mechanically tothe two sides of said loops, and magnet fields, the arrangement of saidmagnet-fields and the said loops relative to each other being such, thatthe loops can be moved by the sa fields, substantially as set forth.

4. An electrically operated circuit-breaker for ignition installationsof internal combustion engines, comprising, in combination, a

as set forth. 1

5. An electrically operated circuit-breaker for ignition installationsof internal combustion engines, comprising, in combination, a

current-carrying conductor, two contacts attach ed thereto andmagnet-fields, the arrangement of said magnet-fields and said contactsrelative to each other being such that thecontacts can be deflected bythe said magnet- 11o fields in-opposite directions, and means for movingthe contacts back into their positlon of rest after every deflection,said means bein'g constituted partly by a current flowmg through thesaid con uctor in a direction op-*-l15 posite tothe deflecting current,substantially as set forth.

6. A circuit breaker for internal combustion engines comprising, incombination,

.means for creating an electric field, a current --l20.

carrying conductor disposed in said field, a

contact secured tosaid conductor, and means for intermittently creatingav magnetic field about said conductor, said last mentioned means beingadapted and arranged to create an oscillatory movement of saidcontact.

7. A circuit breaker for internal combustion engines comprisin ,incombination, an electromagnet, a mova le current carrying conductordisposed in the field of said electromagnet and havin opposed branches,contacts secured to said ranches, and means for intermittently passingcurrent through said conductor to create magnetic fields about thebranches thereof the current flowing in-reverse directions through saidbranches whereby said fields coact with the field of said electromagnetto move said contacts when the circuit through said conductor is ma 8.An electrically operated circuit breaker comprising a magnetic field, amovable 'conductor situatedin said magnetic field, a contact carried bysaid conductor, the arrangement of said conductor, contact and magneticfield, relative to each otherbeing such that the conductor and contactcarried thereby can be moved by the magnetic field in response. to flowof current through the conductor, and means for controlling the flow ofcurrent through said conductor independently of said contact.

'In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature.

- HANS BURKAS.

